I often complain about Archie Comics and their pandering social media practices, which got me thinking… what would be different if I controlled Archie Comics social media accounts?

To be clear, I do love Archie Comics for what they produce. A lot of their comics are great escapes from the typical superhero stories that pop up twice a month. Their comics remind me of high school and stress that comes along with it. But as an Archie fan, there are definitely some changes that I would like to see the company make in order to enhance the reader experience, including:

1. Toning down the frequency of advertisments

I understand that Archie Comics, from a business perspective, wants to advertise up-and-coming comics. That’s how I found out that Josie and the Pussycats, Betty andVeronica, and Reggiewere getting a new comic, so I have no real complains there.

However, this advertising can be excessive on social media.

For example…

Archie Comics shared on Facebook that they will be at New York Comic Con this yea, but instead of accompanying this post with a photo related to New York Comic Con, they instead chose to include a visual advertisement for Archie Meets the Ramones. It’s just not relevant.

The company also over advertises their upcoming comics on social media, an example being the heavy advertising that led up to Josie and the Pussycats first issue (which came out on September 28). Almost every post for the days up until that point was about Josie and the Pussycats, and while I understand the company’s desire to get fans excited for the comic, forcing advertising down fan’s throats is too excessive.

2. Doing memes….but having them make sense.

This. ^

This the exact thing I hate when it comes to companies trying to appeal to teens/trending topics.

How does this make any sense to someone? I get the beginning is a “funny” reference to Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day and their song “Wake Me Up When September Ends,” but every unoriginal asshole on the Internet uses that joke.

The second part of the tweet is a reference to Mean Girls (one of my favorite movies ever)… another joke I’m totally over.

That last little “buy our comics” bit is so sad and so desperate. This makes me imagine some grown man, probably in his 40s, getting no help from his children on what’s hip, so he’s stumbling around trying to figure it out himself.

How can you do a relevant meme with Archie? Well, the running gag on their Tumblr is that Archie himself runs their social media. If they wanted to be relevant, then they easily could have done a #DescribeYourselfWithThreeFictionalCharacters post. They could have either done three incarnations of Archie himself OR gotten creative and thought of three other characters that might be similar to Archie.

Conan O’Brien chose Archie for one of his three fictional characters, so this would have been the perfect opportunity for the company’s social media page to jump on the trend.

You can be relevant without pandering.

3. Posting fan art.

This one is a little bit of a difficult one.

I feel that Archie could benefit from fan involvement by sharing fan art, but I know the company would never do that. Years ago, they tried suing Fanfiction.net because people were writing fan fictions about their characters, citing that the action would “dilute and tarnish their character.”

You read that right. The company that has had Ashlee Simpson referenced in their comics, did a crossover with Glee and the movie Sharknado, thinks that fans writing stories about characters romantically and/or sexually together would tarnish their character.

Sure, Jan.

I feel like if they did contests for fan art or stories through their social media pages, they could get more fans involved, and it would be a great way to showcase talent.

4. Doing Facebook Live Q and As with writers and artists.

Tumblr recently did a Q and A session with writer Mark Waid, which was very interesting. It made me wonder why these kind of live events don’t happen more often.

Hell, Archie Comics could even do it as a promotional live event with Riverdale with the actors answering questions on the set. This would be a great way for fans to be able to ask questions and feel connected with a comic book brand that has been in their lives for a long time.

These are just some of my ideas with what I would do to run Archie Comics social media. This was mostly in fun, but I think if they did do some of these things, their social media presence would be less cringe worthy.

What changes do you think Archie Comics should make in regards to social media? Let us know in the comments!

While you’re munching down on chicken wings and carefully eyeing the performance of your draft picks, your pup is just hoping for some scraps and a chance to play with that good ol’ pig skin.

Still, it’s incredibly fun to dress our pets up and pretend they care!

Check out 10 pups who look ready for Sunday Night Football, and don’t forget to send your own photos and stories to meg@geekgirlworld.com! We’ll feature your dog(s) on our next Dog Day Sunday and enter you to win a Loot Crate Pets!

Truth: 90% of my time on the interwebz is spent laughing at dog memes, gushing over stories about animals, or catching up on what my favorite animal-rights groups are sharing on social media. As such, this week I decided to share 3 paw-some (ha) sites you should follow/like/cyber-stalk online. (Fittingly, I am typing this article on my computer while my pup Shadow cuddles in my lap and looks on!)

Who they are: Named after founder Devanny Novak’s sweet dog, Friends of Mayhem describes themselves as “a Las Vegas non-profit that specializes in helping all kinds of animals through donations, political action or just plain ear scratches!”

Why you should “like” them: Friends of Mayhem spotlights animals with special needs, and campaigns fun and creative ways to help the furballs! For example, earlier this year we covered their very special Benefit for Yoshi, in which they sold shirts that said “Get Your F*cking Dog Fixed.” All the proceeds went toward providing medical care for a dog named Yoshi and other animals at PAWsibilities are Endless. They are positive and upbeat, while still providing valuable and useful information to the community!

Who they are:Time to get serious: Animal Legal Defense Fund reports that abusers of animals are five times as likely to harm humans, and that nearly half of the victims who stay in violent households do so because they are afraid for their pets. Luckily, Noah’s Animal House in Las Vegas, Nevada (and soon Reno, Nevada, too!) “is a pet sanctuary for shelter residents that allow women to escape abusive situations without leaving behind their pet.” I’ve volunteered with NAH since 2012 and have had the privilege of meeting many of the women and their dogs (and cats and hamsters and birds) who have called Noah’s Animal House home!

Why you should “like” them:Noah’s Animal House spotlights the inspirational success stories of the brave women and their loyal pets who have been given a second chance thanks to their services, provides a central place to post requests for supplies and volunteer opportunities (HAAALP! They’re currently in need of a new gas dryer!), and shares great links to animal stories across the world!

Who they are: Susie’s Senior Dogs is a 501(c)3 organization who says it’s their goal to bring “awareness to overlooked, homeless senior dogs and the benefits to adopting an older pet.” Recently they were covered in the hugely popular photography/interview project Humans of New York, which allowed them to get massive exposure and spread their message to a huge animal-loving audience!

Why you should “like” them: Susie’s Senior Dogs works with animal rescue groups all over the United States to spotlight pups who are looking for their fur-ever home! (Literally every dog is a pup to me, even if they are over 7 or in the double digits!) Beautiful photographs paired with descriptions that read like love letters make me want to adopt every dog I see on their page! Even if you’re not planning on expanding your fur family, it’s rewarding to follow the dogs’ stories, from their initial posts to their final adoptions and happily ever afters.

Rather than trying to draw in teens and tweens with engaging and compelling stories, big media outlets (such as comics, television, and movies) often choose to pander to the teenage demographic with memes and pop culture references instead.

Although it’s a sentiment that not everyone will agree with, I wholeheartedly believe that teenagers deserve better from their media.

I often mention during my Archie reviews that Archie Comics tries to pander to the younger demographic, not only through the comics themselves, but through social media. Pandering, is, in simple terms, when a media company attempts to target and draw in a specific demographic (usually teenagers) in hopes that they will utilize or purchase their product.

I usually only call out the pandering I see with Archie because I see it happening all the time on their social media (especially on Tumblr and Facebook), but obviously this is a problem with companies and properties across the spectrum.

The reason why the practice of pandering frustrates me so much? Because companies can reach their target demographic without the pandering nonsense. In fact, if the pandering is too excessive, companies may even scare their target demographic away.

A perfect example of pandering gone wrong is the truth.org commercials, which use outdated Internet memes to scare teenagers away from smoking. The sad truth is that these kinds of PSAs will do very little to lower smoking rates among teenagers and young adults. The real way to get kids and teens to stop smoking? Be honest about the facts and don’t try to become friends with the audience.

The buddy-buddy tactic makes companies kind of look like this:

To use Archie comics as a further example, the only current incarnations of the comics that I haven’t seen pandering in is Jughead.

Jughead’s dream sequences are normally the only time the comic uses pop culture references, which I really like because it seems realistic. After all, who wouldn’t want to dream about a high tech future or a Game of Thrones like adventure? Unlike Jughead, Archie overuses hashtags and heavily promotes their social media accounts.

I understand that Archie Comics wants the young demographic to be a part of the comic, but it’s a little weird to see Archie turn towards me and say “Hey! Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Tumblr @archiecomics! And don’t forget to send ideas for the #LipstickIncident!”

If you ask me, it’s all a little unnecessary.

It’s possible to sell teenagers compelling stories and dramas without pandering, the best example of this likely being Degrassi.

For those who have never been a teenage girl, or never got into it, Degrassi is an almost thirty-year-old (you’re reading that right – next year is Degrassi‘s thirtieth anniversary) teen drama that tends to focus on hot button issues that teenagers might deal with such as STDs, teen pregnancy, and gun violence. Not only did the show feature the issues that would effect teenagers, but all the kids on the show were actual teenagers that usually never had any other acting experience prior to the show, making the viewer experience that more real.

Now I usually don’t have much to complain about since I’ve seen and enjoyed almost every episode of the series, but the original incarnation of the series did not feature any pop culture references, and sadly, with the show’s latest incarnation, Degrassi: Next Class, it’s clear to see from the intro that the show threw the unofficial no-pop references rule out the window.

Now you may be thinking “Okay Courtney, but this is for teenagers! How else are you supposed to be able to relate to them?” How about with compelling stories and only having minor references to anything of today? I understand that the use of technology is pretty huge and discussing it is a great way to keep teens safe, but the intro for the new show really screams “we don’t know what the original intent of the show is anymore!”

One of my favorite stories (and what got me into the show itself) were the episodes “What a Girl Wants (1)” and “What a Girl Wants (2)” from Season 10 of Degrassi: The Next Generation. These episodes told the story of rich girl Fiona Coyne, who was being abused by her boyfriend, Bobby. It pained me watching Fiona suffer with alcohol addiction, eventually even hurting Adam Torres (the first transgender character on the show) by ignoring the fact that he was a boy. The story deep with many levels, and it was relatable for anyone who has experienced a similar situation (like me).

No pop culture was involved in these episodes, sans the use of a cellphone, which Fiona used to circulate photos of herself that made her appear more hurt than she really was (for sympathy, of course). Fiona is a really good example of a multilayered character, and I was happy to watch her story arc as time went on.

Degrassi did a very good job of using technology, but not pop culture, to create good stories.

Another good Degrassi example?

Degrassi High‘s season 2, episode 10 “Showtime (1)”. For a long time, this was the only Degrassi episode that featured a character suicide (Claude Tanner). It was a very serious episode, and it even opened with the actors discussing suicide and how the show dealt with the tragic story line. It was a really good episode, and one I would recommend anyone to watch.

Series like Degrassi prove that compelling storytelling and teen dramas can come hand in hand, so it upsets me when I see obvious pandering in not only the newest incarnation of the show, but in all media targeted at teens.

The next generation seems doomed to deal with corporate pandering and a lack of storytelling for the long haul.

Just in case you’re doubting how bad the issue has become, I leave you all today with a video that perfectly exemplifies how horrifying pandering has become:

And yes, this is a real ad posted by Nickelodeon.

What are your thoughts on demographic pandering? Let me know in the comments!

You can’t open a newspaper tab to a news site without reading about a global catastrophe or a terrible act of violence. You might as well stay off social media, too, lest you be bombarded with drama ranging from simple, sad laments about it nearly being Monday, to posts that will make you want to tearfully cancel your Internet subscription entirely.

There are few things that make me forget everything awful in the world and put a legitimate smile on my face, but one of those things is looking at dog memes with my pups Daisy and Shadow!

For those of you who have been living in a cave without wifi, this is the definition of a meme:

For those of you who have been living in a cave on Jupiter, this is the definition of a dog (take special note of the informal meaning that I definitely did not make up):

While there have been many adorable furballs who have found internet fame via dog memes (such as those mentioned by BarkPost in their feature 11 Essential Dog Memes You Absolutely Need to Know) I thought I’d share a few lesser-known doggies who always make me chuckle, even after a “ruff” day!

(Note: GeekGirl World did not create any of these memes – we’re just trying to spread the e-smiles by sharing these cute canines that we found on the interwebz!)

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Which dog meme is your favorite, GeekGirl World? Share in the comments section!

Want a chance to win last month’s LootPet‘s box and have your pup featured on Dog Day Sunday? Enter to win by sending your pet photos and stories to webmaster@geekgirlworld.com!

Just as the wand chooses the wizard, sometimes man’s best friend chooses his family.

This is the lesson that an extreme marathon runner recently learned while embarking on a 155 mile race in China’s Gobi desert.

Scotland native Dion Leonard was taking part in the annual 4 Deserts Race Series in March when a stray dog suddenly decided to join him on his journey through the Tian Shian mountain range. The tiny female followed Leonard for a whopping 77 miles, completing 4 out of the 6 stages of the competition with him.

“I didn’t speak much to her that day thinking she wouldn’t stay with me, but at the finish line she followed me into the tent and we slept next to each other,” Leonard told The Independent. “That was it then.”

Leonard researched what it would take to bring his new best friend (who he apty named Gobi) home to Scotland with him, only to be met with massive sticker shock.

“Getting Gobi to the UK is a long process, one that will take up to 4 months and see her medically checked, quarantined and fingers crossed cleared for entry. All this comes at a cost close to a whopping £5000,” Leonard explained on his Crowdfunder page. “We are committed to making this work, I am selling some of my whisky collection (I work for) and we are hopeful this will raise some funds to help make these costs more manageable.”

Leonard won’t have to worry about selling that Whiskey collection, as his Crowdfunder campaign easily surpassed its £5000 goal, and is, as of this writing, only a few hundred Pounds short of the £17,000 marker.

For those of you who aren’t up to date with the current conversion rates, that’s over $22,000!

Gobi is currently safe and is staying with one of Leonard’s friends in China until the quarantine process can officially began. He hopes to be reunited with his best friend by Christmas.

Leonard released an update to his and Gobi’s love story earlier today on YouTube:

Once Gobi is (hopefully!) reunited with her human, Leonard plans on donating the remaining sum of money to an animal shelter or rescue facility.

Follow Gobi & Leonard on Facebook to get up-to-date news about Gobi’s journey to her forever home!

Want to see your own dog featured on Dog Day Sunday? Send your photos and stories to meg@geekgirlworld.com and be entered to win a Pet edition of Loot Crate!

National Mutt Day (also known as National Mixed Breed Dog Day), was established in 2005 by Colleen Paige, a celebrity pet & family lifestyle expert and animal welfare advocate. The day is celebrated on July 31 as well as December 2 (bonus!) as part of an effort to raise public awareness about the surplus of mixed-breed dogs in shelters across the country, many of whom will sadly be euthanized due to over crowding.

But there is hope yet for these unwanted, lovable mutts…

Adoption is an excellent way to give a dog a new leash on life, and if the cool stylings of Sarah Mclachlan (as seen above) doesn’t convince you otherwise, maybe these five reasons will:

So by choosing to adopt, rather than shop, you get a new best friend and save the life of a helpless dog.

2. You’ll help put puppy mills out of business

See that cute, fluffy little puppy in the local pet store window? He was most likely born in a puppy mill.

A puppy mill is a large-scale commercial dog breeding facility where dogs are treated like products, not best friends.

These facilities are often crowded, and it’s not uncommon to see dogs and puppies stacked on top of one another like warehouse products. Puppy mill facilities are often extremely unsanitary, with no proper vet care, food, water, or basic socialization available to the dogs who call the factory “home.”

Female dogs are bred as soon as they are mature enough to (and sometimes earlier) and are given little-to-no recovery time between litters. Puppies are ripped from their mothers prematurely and are sold to consumers in pet shops and online marketplaces.

There are two ways to put puppy mills out of business once and for all: purchase a puppy from a certified breeder or adopt.

3. Purebred dogs are plagued with genetic disorders

On the outside, purebred dogs are the perfect choice for dog shows and keeping up with the Jones’ in uppity social circles, but on the inside, they are genetically inbred monsters.

“I’m willing to go on record and say that I generally observe at least one genetic disease in nine out of 10 purebred patients during their first examination with me,” says Dr. Patty Khuly VMD in an op-ed piece for Vetstreet.

“We can chalk a lot of this up to line breeding, the failure to adequately test parents for genetic diseases and the trend among show breeders toward increasingly exaggerated features. Case in point: The English Bulldog of the 1930s bears little resemblance to the flat-faced modern varietal.”

So how can you help ensure that your best friend is free of any major health issues? Truthfully, nothing.

But Dr. Patty does have one big suggestion for would-be dog owners that might help: adopt.

“I know it’s not a popular position to advocate against purebred ownership, but when you consider the genetic disease and animal welfare problems it raises, it makes sense for me to urge my clients to consider mixed breed dogs.”

4. Adoption will save you a fortune

Depending on the dog’s breed and pedigree, purchasing your new best friend from a breeder can cost you thousands of dollars.

Adoption, on the other hand, is extremely inexpensive and sometimes even totally free!

Adopting a dog from a shelter requires only a big heart and a small adoption fee, the latter which helps to support and maintain the shelter’s facilities.

5. You’ll unwittingly become an activist for the cause

Mutts are as unique as snowflakes, and because of this, people will never stop asking you what kind of dog you have.

This provides you with the perfect opportunity to explain to your peers and random admiring strangers the benefits of owning a mutt, and how adopting one helps save the life of an animal in need.

By sharing your story and message, you might just save yet another life.

The Fourth of July is upon us, and that means only one thing: celebrating our independence from Britain fireworks!

Those bright aerial explosions are a total delight for Earth’s only pyromaniac race, but for our pets, experiencing fireworks can be strange and downright terrifying.

Make sure that your lovable canine is safe and happy this Fourth of July by following these tips:

Leave your dog at home

If you know that your dog is afraid of Fireworks, don’t bring him with you to fireworks displays. Period.

More pets tend to run away on the Fourth of July than on any other day, so do not leave your dogs outside unattended – especially if you aren’t home. Keep your pet inside (preferably in a crate, if he is crate trained) and make sure that all the doors and windows are securely shut.

If your dog is a known escape artist, then make sure that his tags are securely fastened on his collar. Just in case.

Mind your body language

If you’re going to be with your dog when the fireworks start exploding in the sky, then it is important to keep your dog close to you and as calm as possible.

Dogs are experts at reading human body language, so your reaction to the fireworks will help them form their own reactions. It may be difficult, but try to be stoic and unexcitable during the fireworks, and divert your gaze from the sky from time to time to play with your dog and reward him for doing some fun tricks.

If you aren’t making a big deal of the fireworks, then your dog might not either.

This veterinarian approved and recommended product gently pulsates and applies pressure on the dog’s body, which soothes the dog and helps keeps him calm through many stressful and high energy situations – including fireworks.

Please note: your dog will need to be conditioned to wear this shirt, so it’s important to let your dog relax in it and get used to it several times before the fireworks begin, otherwise it won’t be an effective tool.

The shirt retails for roughly $40 and can be purchased online and at most major pet chains (think Petco and PetSmart).

(photo credit: thundershirt.com)

Allow your dog plenty of exercise

Your dog may not stress out as much around fireworks if he has spent the day playing and moving, so take a break from the barbecues and pool excursions and spend some quality time with Fido!

Take your dog out to the dog park to play, go for a hike or jog, or just play for hours on end! Do whatever you can to tire your pup out so he (hopefully) can sleep through those scary sky explosions.

If you are going to be exercising your dog more than usual, it’s important to ensure that he is well fed and hydrated throughout the entire day.

This should go without saying, but you know folks these days…

Desensitize your dog to fireworks

If fireworks are a regular occurrence where you live, then you might want to consider desensitizing your dog to the sound.

This can be done by playing sound bytes of fireworks in front of your dog routinely over the span of a couple months. Start with low volume levels, and then gradually pump up the jams over time.

You want your dog to associate the sound with safety, not fear, so it’s extremely important to make sure that your dog is submissive, calm, and comfortable before exposing him to the sound.

This process will take time and patience, but after a while your dog will no longer be afraid of fireworks!

Do you have any more tips that may help dogs get through the Fourth of July peacefully? Let us know in the comments!

Summary:

Review:

The main plot points this episode are with Ruiz, the race issues that are brewing in the prison since the Latin population is growing, Caputo trying to deal with the sizing issue, Piper trying to still act tough with the help of Red, and Judy King making her stay at Litchfield.

I’m very glad how they are developing Ruiz as a character. It was nice to see her background and more about the father of her child. It helped us see that it’s in his nature to be quiet, she understands that, and they do have love for each other. With this flashback, you also see her father, who is El Leon, and why she isn’t really trying to take sides in the race wars. I liked that we got to see how tough Ruiz is, and the ending where she and Blanca are kind of joining forces brings some promise of what might be coming in future episodes.

Caputo dealing with the sizing issues is a nightmare to watch. It was hard to feel sympathy for him because any time he’s trying to help the cause, it seems like he’s making it worse. On what planet does he really think that port-a-potties and ear plugs are a good solution for being one hundred plus people over capacity? The only good thing to come from this was the mention that they should hire retired veterans as COs, especially disabled ones. Their reasoning for it is really shitty, but if this were to happen, maybe Bennett would be coming back. I hope this happens because Daya needs that closure.

Piper is still acting tough and “gangsta”, and it’s still annoying. I do love that she tries to act tough in front of Red, who responds by immediately shutting that stuff down. I wasn’t really a big fan of how she tried to get her roommate to be her “secret service”. It was really embarrassing to watch, and it made me kind of cringe since it shows how much she’s the writer’s favorite.

Judy King is probably my favorite person at Litchfield right now. The fact that she’s just taking advantage of the fact that she’s getting special treatment is pretty funny since it seems like she’s asking for it. She does mention that she doesn’t want anyone that would be a threat or problem as her roommate, which ultimately leads to Yoga Jones being her roomie. It will be interesting to see if she will stick to her guns about not wanting to fully be immersed in the special treatment that comes with that room.

There’s a few little roommate wars that are mentioned in this episode, such as the issues between Cindy/Tova and Alison and the issue between Red and Dwight. There’s also small mentions with Daya and her mother about Ceasar that I’m not going to get too much into, but their relationship is pretty toxic.

The one between Tova and Alison, who isn’t named until later (I had to find her name while rounding the Internet) is definitely supposed to show a religious war, which I feel is not necessary for this story. I understand that religious scuffles do happen, and are happening right now in countries worldwide, but it’s unnecessary for one the main plots in OITNB.

When it comes to Red and Dwight, I can definitely understand how snoring can get annoying. The whole situation between the two was funny, but I hope that this does put a slight end to it. This short plot serves only as comedic relief in an overall serious episode.

Finally, I was hurt and bothered when Maritza and Flacca made fun of Pennsatucky when she asked about the ducks. The ducks were a grooming technique and a good indicator if a guard is going after inmates or just Pennsatucky. It killed me the way that they made fun of her since she showed a lot of strength asking about it. This whole rape plot with Pennsatucky is a strain on me. Every time she tries to get better, something is pushing her back, It’s hard to heal from that.

[Warning: this review contains Orange is the New Black season 4 spoilers]

Synopsis:

“With a major security breach and a lot of new inmates, Caputo has to call in the big guns. Things get a little to real for Crazy Eyes and Lolly”

Review:

I was very uncomfortable with the grooming (which is when a sexual predator tests to see how far they can go with their victim without getting caught) and eventual rape scene between Pennsatucky and Coates in Orange is the New Black season 3, so I was a bit hesitant to start season 4. It’s very difficult for a survivor to watch these heinous scenes, so I’m cautiously watching this new season.

The first episode of the new season mainly focuses on Caputo, who is busy dealing with new issues as prison warden (such as the hole in the fence with the prisoners leaving, a guard walking off, new inmates, making the prison overcapacity, etc.).

The episode also featured a side plot with Lolly and Alex, who kill the guard (and hitman) that tried to strangle Alex. The pair then attempt to figure out what to do with the body. Also, Maureen and Suzanne (I refuse to call her Crazy Eyes) ran away from the lake and hid in the forest, and Litchfield’s new, famous inmate Judy King (who I’m guessing is the Martha Stewart of Litchfield) is getting special treatment in prison due to her celebrity status.

My favorite side plot out of the three was the one featuring Maureen and Suzanne. Though I do like that Alex is seeming to slightly accept Lolly (something that I really like since Lolly is an interesting character that could be explored further) Suzeanne and Maureen had very sweet moments. The two’s relationship reminds me a lot of Misery (the book and the movie), with Maureen being a huge fan of Suzanne’s erotic fiction and wanting her to write more. I also enjoyed that Suzanne is eventually not comfortable with their “escape”, mentioning that she didn’t know that she was supposed to be gone forever and that she wanted to be back at the prison in time for dinner. I like that the writers are trying to show that Suzanne can stick up for herself in some situations.

The Alex and Lolly plot is interesting, because although Lolly was the one that essentially killed the guard, it was Alex who went back and suffocated him. She cries while she’s suffocating him, which shows that she does have compassion, as well as fear. It is good to see characterization with Alex. I had two main reasons for not really liking this plot though: the jokes that were made about sending the pictures of dead Alex and what the duo did with the body. After they see that the guard was getting texts from Kubra demanding photographic evidence of her death, he then asks for a picture of her breasts, which Lolly describes as a “Cosby dream shot”. I always find rape/rapist jokes to be in poor taste and that specific one was not good for me. What they end up doing with the body though is, with the help of another inmate, cut it up and bury it under the garden. A lot of blood was involved in this scene, but it wasn’t too graphic.

The episode also included minor scenes that called backs to the previous seasons. Morello talked happily about her wedding and being able to have sex with her husband, and Boo tried to tone down the talk because it was making Pennsatucky uncomfortable. There was also a nod to Poussey and Soso being a thing, and the two end up talking about whether or not black people can be racist.

The one that I disliked from this episode (and it dragged forever) was Piper being seen as “gangsta” and trying to act tough in the prison. I don’t like Piper, and her trying to be tough was really annoying. I just wanted to hit her – she’s about as tough as I am (which isn’t much) and she’s supposed to be the one that audiences feel sympathy for? Her characterization is very odd as the seasons go by.

Overall, I did enjoy the episode but I’ll have to see how the rest of the season goes before I decide if I’m going to keep watching.